WASHINGTON — Bill Frist '74, a heart and lung transplant surgeon turned Republican U.S. senator, took over as the Senate majority leader on Monday.
Frist emerged in mid-December as the Republicans' choice to replace Trent Lott, who stepped down after suggesting the country would be better off if a segregationist had been elected president in 1948.
Frist said at a Dec. 23 press conference that he looks forward to easing the racial tension brought forward by Lott's statement at South Carolina Sen. Strom Thurmond's 100th birthday party.
Senate Republicans said they will "dedicate ourselves to healing those wounds of division that have been reopened so prominently during the past few weeks," Frist said.
Frist pointed to expanding prescription drug benefits in Medicare, boosting the economy and supporting President Bush's war on terrorism as three top priorities for Republicans in the new Congress.
Frist's voting record is nearly identical to Lott's — both received a grade of F from the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People in its most recent ratings of congressmen — but Frist brings a different style to the job. Recognized as politically sensitive and affable, he will face a daunting challenge as he tries to lead a closely divided Senate.
Frist, who has represented Tennessee since 1994, coordinated the successful Republican effort to recapture control of the chamber in November, earning the admiration of many of his colleagues.
The Senate's only doctor, he has repeatedly found use for his medical background. He has treated people in the Capitol, and during last fall's anthrax attacks, he calmed anxious senators and staffers.
A member of the Cottage Club while at the University, Frist was also president of the Flying Club, according to his entry in the 1974 "Nassau Herald." In a reunion booklet put together by the Class of 1974, alumni were asked to say what part of the University they like most, and what part they liked least.
"Liked most: Graduation. Liked least: Cold weather," wrote Frist, who is a Tennessee native.
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